Tricycles by their nature are inherently self-balancing, due to their triangulated footprint. Conventional tricycles disadvantages only become apparent at speed when directional changes are required, as conventional fixed frame vehicles do not have the ability to counteract centrifugal forces induced by directional change. The only force available to offset this is made by the operator in shifting their weight to counteract this force. Unfortunately this is seldom enough to put the conventional tricycle on par with a conventional bicycle in terms of handling at speed. The advantage of the bicycle in this regard, is its ability to be leaned into corners as an option to counteract the centrifugal forces induced during directional change at speed.
Some prior art tricycle designs are not conventional and do have the ability to be leaned whilst being turned, but those that are known to the applicant lack the unique combination of features and resulting functional performance described herein for the present invention.
Examples of prior art three wheeled vehicles include those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,198,072, 4,359,231, 4,432,561, 4,572,535, 4,789,173, 5,568,935, 6,062,581, 6,105,986, 6,572,130 and D485514.